San Lucio was the first large vineyard established on the Regaleali Estate, from which the first and subsequent editions of Rosso del Conte were created. It covers about 7 hectares, of which 5.5 were planted in 1959 with mixed plants of Perricone and Nero d’Avola, while a portion of about 1.5 hectares was planted in 1965 solely with Nero d’Avola. The vineyard is 480 metres above sea level, with a south-south-east exposure. The soil is yellowish brown, loamy-sandy, partly calcareous, with a slight amount of skeleton; the pH is slightly alkaline (8.5). The oldest vineyard of Regaleali usually gives a medium level of vigour to the vines, a prerequisite for the balanced ripening of red medium-late grapes. It is capable of resisting the effects of extreme climates, whether hot or cold, and produces only a few grams of grapes per plant, but of an incredible constancy in quality. The vines are cultivated as bushes, the oldest and most widespread technique in the semi-arid regions of the Mediterranean. The planting density, amounting to 4,400 plants per hectare, is also classic, and is realised by placing the vines at a distance of 1.5 metres from each other. At Regaleali, short pruning is adopted for red varieties, with three-four spurs of two buds.
Often short pruning is carried out in association with a brace for tying up the shoots that develop from the spurs.
The two varieties, Perricone and Nero d’Avola, have a similar vegetative cycle: they are fairly late grapes, which ripen on average between the end of September and the beginning of October. Faithful expression of the territory from which it comes – the high hills in the centre of Sicily – on an aromatic level, Rosso del Conte never exceeds in overripe notes while still ensuring a full phenolic maturation. Exuberant, vibrant, energetic in its youth, with ageing it develops a velvety tactile texture, without losing tone or taste progression. In its long history, it has known different stylistic variations, in particular in the technique of ageing: chestnut barrels, Slavonian oak, small French oak barrels. However, it always maintains its unique identity.